SERMON SPOTLIGHT * 11/16/25
Grace empowers believers to focus on God’s missional purposes! Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.
SERIES: PLANT
TEXT: Nehemiah 1-2
TITLE: God’s Mission – Our Passion
PREACHER: Tim Lambros
POINTS:
I. God’s Passion for His Mission
II. Nehemiah’s Passion for God’s Mission
III. Our Passion for God’s Mission
SERMON EXCERPTS:
All quotes and text emphasis are taken directly from the pastor’s notes.
ILLUSTRATION: looking up to people growing up, God’s use of individuals in scripture to inspire us
“For context: 2 Chronicles 36:17-23. But God. God’s remnant. God, who is passionate about His mission, has a remnant He will show mercy to. God raises up two men – Ezra as a priest and Nehemiah as a governor. Ezra leads two waves of exiles back to Jerusalem, and Neh will lead the third according to Cyrus’ decree. BUT GOD. God is a patient God. From Abraham to this point in redemptive history. Why a remnant? BECAUSE GOD IS PASSIONATE ABOUT HIS MISSION!”
“God has always been on mission. He doesn’t get distracted like we do. God has always raised up leaders to lead His people to advance His mission. Now we see how God uses Nehemiah to advance His mission.”
“A Man Affected by the mission (1:1-4) - Neh has a high-ranking position in a foreign country. He is in exile in Babylon. We’ll see in just a minute how God has strategically placed him. It’s the month of Chislev, which is around the time of our month of December. He locates himself in the citadel of Susa.”
“Notice the details in V. 2. He gets some news from his brother about those who had escaped Babylon and returned to their land. He’s referring to the two waves of people who had returned. Nehemiah is vested in God’s mission; he has questions about the wave of returning exiles and Jerusalem. Then in V. 3, Nehemiah gets some bad news.”
“READ V. 3: The remnant is in trouble. They are in shame because the wall is broken down and the gates have been destroyed by fire. Rather than digging into what that meant, I want us to notice in V. 4 how Nehemiah responds. He is emotionally affected. He is impacted by this news. He’s invested in God’s mission, so how can he not be affected?”
“He is emotionally affected. He is impacted by this news. He’s invested in God’s mission, so how can he not be affected? We are created to be responders. All day long, things come at us and we respond. Sometimes it’s good and godly responses, and most of the other times we respond sinfully and have to RUN to the grace of repentance.”
“Why is Nehemiah a compelling example for us? He weeps THEN TURNS IMMEDIATELY TO PRAYER. We aren’t told any specifics, but Nehemiah’s affections are stirred because God’s purposes for God’s people are in trouble. AS SOON AS I HEARD THESE WORDS … Nehemiah is immediately affected. He’s instantly impacted, sits down, and weeps. The text says he mourns for days. He begins to fast.”
“Why such a dramatic reaction to the news? Look at the last verse of Neh. 1. READ Neh. 1:11b God strategically placed Nehemiah as the king’s cupbearer. Think butler. He dies if there is food or wine brought with poison in it. A king eats multiple times a day. He is busy. He has responsibilities. Yet what do we see? He stops whatever he’s doing, sits down, and weeps. He mourns for days and fasts before the Lord. By God’s grace, Nehemiah is so connected with God’s mission that when news like this comes to him, he CANNOT be UNAFFECTED. His life is so tied up in God’s mission, his affections are immediately impacted.”
“How about you? Does news about the inevitable struggles of our mission in this Church ever affect you like this? As we next look closely at Nehemiah’s prayer I think you’ll see why his life is literally and functionally tied to God’s mission.”
“A Man with convictions about the God of the mission (1:5-11) - Nehemiah is convinced of at least two things. First, God is approachable. There appears to be no hesitation on Nehemiah’s part. He is living in exile; there is no temple location for God’s presence, no routine, no sacrifices, but he immediately turns to prayer.”
“Yet notice in V. 5 how he addresses God. GREAT AND AWESOME – WHO KEEPS HIS COVENANT – STEADFAST LOVE. Nehemiah knows God, and he knows God’s Word – he’s praying through truths about God from Exodus and Deuteronomy – He knows His character – God is a covenant-keeping God. He has been in God’s Word, what has been revealed to that point in redemptive history, and prays accordingly.”
“This is an impressive prayer! Nehemiah is convinced; he believes God’s plan to create a people for Himself. He’s been in God’s word, and he’s seen, over and over, God stating, ‘I will be your God and you will be my people.’ He prays the reality he knows from God’s word – you promised destruction and scattering if we disobeyed, but you also promised that if we turned back to you … you would gather up all your people even if they are scattered ‘in the uttermost parts of heaven.’”
“Notice V. 11 His final petition … READ V. 11B ‘Give success and grant mercy’. Nehemiah has convictions about God and God’s word, but he also knows he’s been called. He knows he’s called to lead through this difficult time in the mission and knows at some point he must TAKE A HUGE RISK and approach the king for permission to do some important things to advance the mission of God’s people getting back to the promised land.”
“Nehemiah’s example for us today isn’t just that he’s available, “here I am, send me.” That’s an important element, but a man who is available and is convinced about who God is and what God is about … well, that’s a man who will be focused and undistracted.”
“A Man taking risk and action for the mission (2:1-11) READ V. 1-3 - King Artaxerxes is who Neh serves at a high level. He has already given Ezra and some exiles permission to return to Jerusalem. For Neh the risk is that the king might see him as disloyal.”
“Neh is afraid. He fears for his life. Yet for the king’s part he sees something – he must know Neh because this scene is like you noticing the body language of someone in your Community Group and asking, ‘hey, are you ok?’ Neh tells him his concerns … V. 4, and the king responds favorably.”
“Notice what happens next – V. 7 letters to the governors Beyond the River. Why? Ezra 4:7-9 says that these leaders had convinced King Artaxerxes to stop the rebuilding of the city. Then he asks for more. No wonder he prayed before he asked anything. He requests a letter to Asaph so that he would have access to some of those great cedars from Lebanon for materials to build!”
“What’s so exemplary about this scene? Nehemiah is not only a man in action; it appears he’s been thinking and planning, and waiting for a moment like this. He’s not just serving up the wine, waiting for God to give him some sign in the sky that it’s time to move. He’s thinking, planning, praying so that the moment there’s an opening BOOM, he’s ready. Nehemiah is a strategic thinker!”
“In Christ, we have the Holy Spirit given to us to empower us for mission. Acts 1:8. Grace empowers believers to focus on God’s missional purposes.”
“What can we take away from Nehemiah’s example? Grow and increase your affection for God’s mission. By God’s amazing grace, you can increase your love and affection for God’s purposes. How? Spend time in the Word! That’s how our desires get synced up with God’s desires! God’s summons of you and me occurs as His Word convinces us we are best off when we are giving our lives to His purposes.”
“Increasingly allow prayer to be your first impulse. Church, I’m convinced that whatever God wants to do through us on the east side – He will grow us in our need for prayer. Growing us to a place where news like Neh got instinctively moves us to pray.”
“Prepare yourself for action. Learn to talk about Christ in longer conversations.”
ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Acts 20:22–24
SONGS FROM THIS SUNDAY:
All Things
The Lord Almighty Reigns (Psalm 93)
From Everlasting (Psalm 90)
Is He Worthy
Our Song From Age To Age
NEXT WEEK’S PASSAGE:
Nehemiah 3 - Ordinary People, Extraordinary Work
THE BOOK OF THE QUARTER:
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